The Client
SMECO
In 1935, Southern Maryland was so sparsely populated that commercial electrical power companies refused to extend service to the area. Like many other rural communities throughout the nation, the area faced the dim prospect of life without electricity.
The region’s residents took matters into their own hands. They sought federal assistance through the Rural Electrification Administration (REA), created in 1936 as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’ss New Deal and in 1937, they formed the Southern Maryland Tri-County Cooperative Association.
In 1942, the members converted their association into a non-profit membership cooperative corporation and changed the name to Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative, Inc. (SMECO). At the time, the company had 438 miles of line. Their members included more than 1,400 families. Electric bills typically averaged five dollars a month.
Today, SMECO has more than 9,400 miles of line and provides power to more than 130,000 residential, commercial and individual customers, but it remains a cooperative corporation, owned by its members and operated for them on a non-profit basis. Rates are based on the cost of doing business. Surplus income, if any, is returned to the members through Capital Credits.
The Solution
The WBST is a short-form measure of basic verbal and math skills for adults. Results can be directly compared to the skills required for entry-level jobs.
Available individually or as a set, the WBST Verbal and Quantitative tests quickly and accurately measure skills required to succeed in nearly every occupation.
WBST content and results are directly tied to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Information Network (O*Net) and Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) General Educational Development Scales (GED). The Wonderlic Hire Results process includes an analysis of your specific job to establish appropriate minimum math and language scores for your position.
Basic Skills Test Ensures New Hires Can Climb the Corporate Ladder
Combine entry-level workers trying to move up the ladder without the necessary math and English skills necessary to do the job with a literal deluge of new applicants for any open position, and you have a definite need for the Wonderlic Basic Skills Test (WBST).
In entry-level jobs in many companies, it isn’t necessary to have the kind of advanced reading and mathematics skills that it takes to successfully tackle upper-level positions. However, Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) likes to promote from within, and that presented a problem when it came to moving skilled workers into higher-level jobs.
“At SMECO, people in entry-level jobs can bid into other positions,” explains HR professional Judy Dudley. “But some good entry-level workers were bidding for and getting promoted into jobs without having the level of reading and math skills that they needed. It created a lot of problems for us and resulted in unfortunate terminations for good workers who just couldn’t handle those jobs.”
There had to be a way to ensure that those entry-level workers had the skills to move up the ladder, but Dudley found that a reading and mathematics test at that stage of the game wasn’t possible.“Testing our current entry-level workers who wanted to move into upper-level jobs wasn’t an option because we’re a unionized facility, and as such we can’t test current employees who are at the promotion stage,” says Dudley. “So we decided, since we couldn’t test our current workers, we’d test everyone before they were hired to make sure they already had the skills necessary to move up.”
That’s when Dudley turned to the Wonderlic Basic Skills Test (WBST). She gives the WBST to all qualified applicants for entry-level positions including apprentice lineman, meter reader, custodians, clerical workers and even accounting workers.
“We give the WBST to anyone coming into SMECO from the outside,” she explains. “Because of the kind of turnover we have and the amount of people applying for each job, we test up to 1,000 people each year.”
SMECO uses the test as a screening tool, whittling applicants down on the basis of the WBST score. They do not hire anyone who fails the test.“The WBST gives me peace of mind that we’re hiring qualified people who are able to do the job,” says Dudley.
At first, Dudley used to bring applicants in one-by-one and test them individually. Because of the volume of applicants for each position, this proved to be a bit cumbersome.
“Now, we do group testing,” Dudley explains. “We’ll bring in 50 or 60 people and have them all take the WBST at once.”
Here’s how it works in practice: Recently, SMECO held a job fair to staff apprentice linemen positions. Out of the hundreds of people who attended the job fair, one hundred people came to be tested on the WBST. Of those, 81 passed the test and went on to interview for the positions; 14 were hired.
Similarly, SMECO recently was hiring for a temporary, 18-month, contract position with no benefits and no guarantee of continued employment. A full 500 people applied for those jobs. Of those, SMECO tested 350. Less than half passed the tests, and 19 were hired for the project. Applications and scores for both the lineman and temp positions are good for one year to offer additional opportunities for candidates.
“Applicants love the WBST because they get the sense that we’re really considering them carefully if we think enough of them to give them the test,” she says. “They have the opportunity to take it and, if nothing else, that gives them experience for the next time. Once they pass it, they may be interviewed. The test is a step in the process for them, and if they get that far, they’re pleased.”
Dudley is pleased as well. The WBST has solved two problems for SMECO. Now, every entry-level worker has the math and English skills to succeed at upper-level jobs, eliminating the problem of promoting people beyond their ability level. The WBST also helps Dudley sift through the hundreds of people applying for each job, thereby making her job infinitely easier.
“The WBST has just been a tremendous help in obtaining new hires,” Dudley says.
